Golden Threads

October is full of contrasts:

one morning dawns bright and warm,

the next, damp and gray

as Nature saves her most resplendent dress

for these ever-fleeting days.

We watch cloud-shadows chase each other

over richly-painted hillsides and slow-moving rivers

as sun inches westward, illuminating the valley floor.

Late afternoon light catches the treetops

and swaddles them inside her amber glow.

Light and shadows, chill and warmth,

these sparkling days too soon succumb 

to winter’s gloom and darkness...

but today, we smile—

reveling in the mastery

of a perfect golden sunset.

© Ginny Brannan 2019